Swanning About in the Desert - A Command Decision: Test of Battle AAR

 I love the Command Decision rules by Frank Chadwick but rarely play them because they don't suit the time I normally have with my poor, long-suffering friend Steve. However, this week I have become enthusiastic to try a scenario from the Benghazi Handicap sourcebook solo. I picked 'Scenario 7: The Battle for Hafid Ridge', which is set in 1941. This is the first one for which I painted all the figures and made the terrain, although I realised when I decided to set it up that I have no 6mm sangar or entrenchment markers, so I used ASL counters instead. I am also using ASL counters to mark unspotted units, and it occurs to me that I could use them for a variety of other purposes in the game, such as ghost markers and the like.

I played at half scale because it suits the space I have. I also used the Fog of War cards, including the ones for the Western Desert that are downloadable from the Test of Battle website. The plan with the cards was to draw them as normally and to use them to the best advantage of the drawer. Cards that could not be used at all in the context of the game were discarded as they were drawn. As it turned out, there were few opportunities to use the cards I drew, but they don't normally have a massive effect anyway. It's more about a little colour and unpredictability in the game.

The scenario sees a tiny Axis force dug in and attempting to hold off an Allied tank regiment until reinforcements can arrive. The Allied force must capture one of two 'pimples' in the desert while keeping their line of communication secure. They can also expect some reinforcements to help them hold whatever terrain they can. The biggest problem for the Allies is that they have no infantry to take and hold ground until the reinforcements arrive. The other biggest problem is that one of the Axis units is an 88. That has the potential to cause problems. This scenario lends itself quite well to solo play because the initial set-up leaves the Axis few options and thus makes them easier to manage. I did not have the patience to work out how to adjudicate phantom stands, so I am ignoring those for now. This changes the scenario slightly, because there is less recce required to work out which Germans are where, but I want to keep the game simple because I am playing alone and have to manage everything.

I used Charles Grant's Programmed Wargames Scenarios as the basis for the solo engine. The first scenario in the book 'Hill Line Defence' is pretty much the situation for this game so I used the tables in that scenario to decide set-up and how both sides responded to the changing situation on the tabletop.

• Rules: Command Decision: Test of Battle
• Sourcebook: Benghazi Handicap
• Figures: Heroics and Ros 6mm
• Terrain: XPS hexes made using Hex Terrain Toolkit. XPS from Panel Systems. Not sure who made the building.

Set up

Dicing for the defenders, I find that their orders are to occupy the two objectives and not to move. This means that they will get Hold orders until they have to respond to the Allied attack. I diced to see which command would set up on which 'pimple'. The anti-aircraft platoon set up on the German right flank (Point 208). The anti-tank platoon and motorcycle troops set up on the German left flank (Point 204). All the guns were in trenches and the remaining troops were in sangars.

2nd Royal Tank Regiment diced for set up and it was decided that they would attack in strength on their right flank with a smaller force in the centre to scout and mop up routing troops! This means that the Allies will be attempting to capture the objective held by the anti-tank platoon first and then to sweep left against the anti-aircraft platoon.

The forces at set-up. Germans are to the top of the picture occupying the two objectives. British forces are deployed center and right towards the centre of the picture

All troops start the game unspotted, so the first job is to find them. The Allied tanks will quickly be spotted and the Germans have probably been watching the dust clouds for ages. The tanks are poor at spotting, so the Germans could well remain unspotted even after they fire, and the tanks will need to close the range quickly if they are to stand a chance of finding targets.

I am gobsmacked by how empty the battlefield is at this point! So, to the game. It's been a while since I played so it is probably good that there are few troops on the table

Turn 1

The Axis forces get Hold orders. All the Allied troops get Cautious Advance orders with a view to moving into range and finding the enemy quickly while still having a chance to shoot well if they do spot the enemy.

The tanks advance quickly and are spotted by the Germans. B Squadron spots two infantry units in sangars along the front of Point 204. As B squadron advances on Point 204, the German 37mm ATG opens fire first, followed by the anti-tank rifles of the motorcycle battalion. One of the A13s is forced back and retreats out of range. In the centre, the A10s of C Squadron come under heavy but ineffective fire from the 88 and the 20mm Flak, but cannot see where the fire originated from.

The British advance (left) versus the German stutzpunkt (right)

Despite concentrating their fire on Point 208, the British tanks failed to score any hits.

Even with the volume of fire, all troops' morale remained high. The Germans reloaded and prepared to shoot these sitting ducks once more. The British armour resolved to close with the Germans and engage more effectively.

Turn 2

At this point, confusion struck in A Squadron's A9 cruisers. The Germans played a Fog of War card that permitted them to change the tanks' orders form Hasty Movement to Hold. They would be sitting ducks on the rise where they were. Whatever movement caused the confusion also caused the German AA platoon to be revealed (British Fog of War card).

Despite this fortuitous confusion, the German flak units failed to score a hit on the British tanks who milled around, wondering which gear they should be in.

Confusing and carnage (British on the left, Germans on the right of the picture)

On the other flank, the Allied armour laid down heavy machine-gun fire on the German positions and eliminated a platoon of the motorcyclists. B Squadron suffered too, as another of its troops was driven back.

Both B Squadron and the Motorcycle company were unhappy with the treatment they were being given and were pinned by the fire.

Turn 3

British reinforcements are evident by the dust cloud they make racing up the track to support 2 RTR. 6 RTR deploys two squadrons to protect the line of communications initially. The other two advance to support 2 RTR. Infantry and artillery race forward to take up firing positions. Meanwhile, much ammunition is expended and B Squadron falls back in its entirety to regroup. Point 208 seems ridiculously unassaultable at this stage, and high command has clearly goofed in sending a tank unit in first. Maybe with the reinforcing infantry units, the British will make more progress.

British reinforcements arrive from the left of the picture

Turn 4

The British commander saw a dust cloud on the horizon. German reinforcements were on their way. He chose to hold in defensive positions before committing his reserves where the Germans attacked. The battlefield was covered in smoke from all the shells being fired and an A9 of A Squadron 2RTR was now ablaze near Point 208. No German troops were hurt, although they were still keeping their heads down as best possible. The British unlimbered their 25lbers and prepared to clear Point 208 once and for all.

An uneventful turn

Turn 5

The German commander deployed his new Motorcycle troops and anti-tank battery to shore up the defence of Point 208. In the process of deploying, two of the light trucks were destroyed but his troops were made of stern stuff and shrugged off the loss. They had no intention of retreating from the objective anyway! He advanced his armour in the centre where it could aim to flank the enemy troops and roll over their guns before driving for the exit point on the British baseline. Heavy fire from the British drove one tank back, but morale was high and the troops were veterans so they were unphased.

German reinforcements arrive from the right of the picture

The British forward troops withdrew with cover from their armour, while the infantry dismounted and prepared for a charge on the enemy positions under cover of their guns. Things were not looking good for the British troops, but they were stout yeoman all and were determined not to lose.

Turn 6

The 25lbers laid down suppressive fire on two of the enemy anti-tank guns. The German armour advanced. The British armour advanced. In the firefight as the enemy combatants closed on each other, an A13 and a PzII were brewed up and several tanks on both sides were forced back to regroup before carrying on. The plucky British infantry raced towards the enemy sangars, only for half their number to be driven back by the weight of fire.

Armoured chariots clash!

The tank gunners prepared their guns in their racing tanks, awaiting their moment. It arrived with a crash of thunder as dozens of armoured chariots on both sides opened up. Shells rained down on every target on the battlefield. At the end of it, German shot weighed heavier than British. Four British tank units were brewed up to two German. The infantry were also cut down by the Motorcycle Battalion. British pluck was not enough to defeat German steel yet, but the British armour vowed to carry on.

Turn 7

Things looked very bad for the British but there was still time to carry the day if only they could push forward fast enough. Laying down suppressive fire on Point 208 again, the British armour advanced towards the Germans, closing the range as fast as they could to counter the German advantage of armour. The ensuing clash saw half the armour on both sides destroyed or fleeing.

A bad turn for British morale

The Germans had Fog of War cards that benefitted their own morale checks this turn, and just as well given some of their rolls, and one that forced additional penalties on British morale checks, which resulted in an entire tank squadron routing from the battlefield. On the positive side, the British were able to fix one of their A10s thanks to a Fog of War card and were able to automatically fix a Shaken unit.

Turn 8

The sun is heading for the horizon. The battlefield is littered with brewed up tanks. Those that remained moved towards the fray once more, determined not to let the enemy win and many more now lay as shattered hulks on the desert sand. The 25lbers finally got the range on the enemy positions on Point 208 and drove an enemy unit out of their sangars. In return, enemy fire drove them from their guns and they had to fall back to cover.

Nearly nightfall

Turn 9

Once more the tanks charged and the guns opened up. The 25lber crews recrewed their guns. One of the 25lbers was hastily manhandled up the rise to get a better line of fire (Fog of War card) and promptly demolished the German 50mm anti-tank gun. As the tanks clashed, the British gunners suddenly found the weak points on the German armour. None was left by the time the firing paused. In contrast, the German guns barely found their mark at all.

The British finally start to have an effect

Turn 10

The British armour surged forward once more, only for an A15 to be knocked out by the 88. It's gunners had finally found their sights. The 20mm AA drove back another A15. The unit was pinned down now. Meanwhile, on Point 208 the Germans stubbornly held on. One Motorcycle Rifle platoon was destroyed but the rest of the force there were solid, even if they were pinned down by weight of fire. They gritted their teeth and prepared to weather the onslaught a while longer.

The Germans hold on

Turn 11

Heavy fire continued to rain on Point 208 as night fell and a series of desperate charges were made by both sides seeking to break the stalemate here. However, as night fell the Germans still held the objective. The tattered British force withdrew to laager away from the battlefield while the ragged remnants of the German force held the field and victory.

As night falls, the British find their efforts were too late and the Germans hold the objectives

Final Thoughts

That was an extremely bloody battle. It could have ended on turn 8 but the dice declared that it would end on turn 11. It could have gone on one more turn, but I do not think that would have been enough, even with the late successes of the British.

Mistakes were made both with the rules and the tactics, but at least I can put the latter down to Programmed Wargames Scenarios and the dice. I feel that once the scouting was done, the British should probably have focused on the anti-aircraft platoon, as the weaker defensive position. It would have cost them a few tanks, but the 25lbers could have neutralised that position more quickly while remaining out of range of the infantry on Point 208. However, the battle plan was decided by the AI from Programmed Wargames Scenarios, and I chose to follow that rather than use my 200' general's knowledge of the table. It made for a good game just the same.

It will be a while before I can play another game of it, so I imagine that the same rules mistakes will be made once more because I will be equally rusty with the rules then, if not more so in fact. I don't really care about the rules mistakes. I try to stick to the spirit of the rules anyway, and my opponent in these solo games does likewise. It was good to dig out my 6mm WW2 armies after so long, and it was great to use the terrain I spent ages building. I have enough terrain for the next scenario, but I still need more. The one I plan to play after that has a chunk of the escarpment on it, and I need to figure out the best way of modelling that using hex tiles.